A Merseyside firefighter warned Government cuts to the service would cost lives in a Facebook post which has been shared by more than 10,000 people.

Mark Rowe, secretary of Merseyside Fire Brigades Union, said he would “not remain silent” about the bleak situation he said was facing Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service .

He said numbers of fire engines and firefighters had both been cut and members of his union were set to increase their working week by 12 hours to protect the public.

Mr Rowe, who said he had been a firefighter in Merseyside for 28 years, wrote: “Cuts cost lives is not just a soundbite it is a reality.”

He said fire engines were having to travel from further afield and added: “Firefighter numbers have been cut in just over a decade from 1200 to 680 and as a result of the next round of Conservative cuts that number will fall to potentially 460 or less.

“It is my view that members of the public will continue to die as a result of these cuts and that those deaths will increase.

The Facebook post by Mark Rowe about the impact of Government cuts on Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service

“I am incredibly proud of Fire Brigades Union firefighter members in Merseyside who, as they do every day of their working lives, put the public of Merseyside first in the face of these cuts. “FBU members have increased the amount of work they do under the ethos of doing more for less (increasing their workload to make up for the job losses) so that they act as buffers attempting to protect the public from the worst of these cuts.”

He said the cuts had created an “incredibly dangerous situation”.

Mr Rowe added: “Cameron and his cabinet have simply turned their backs on the people (of) Merseyside. These are your fire stations, these are your fire engines and firefighters: David Cameron and his cabinet do not own them you do, once they are gone you will never get them back.”

Earlier this month chief fire officer Dan Stephens told the ECHO it was “increasingly difficult” to keep open the number of fire stations Merseyside currently has.

Over the last four years, the fire service has had to make savings of £20m as a result of government cuts, and must make a further £6.3m savings in 2015-16.

Consultations have been carried out on proposals to close Upton and West Kirby fire stations and build a new fire station in west Wirral and on a plan to merge Huyton and Whiston fire stations.

Mr Rowe’s post went viral soon after going online on Saturday night, and has so far had 10,200 likes and 8,700 comments.